Towards Liberation of Ukrainian Higher Education and Research: Decentering Academic Institutions for Deconstruction of the Soviet Legacy

• In Event: Institutional Liberation of Ukraine in the Face of the Russian Aggression: Media, Criminal Justice, Information Security, and Education

Abstract

The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2014 resulted in a duplication of universities, as some faculty members and administrators left occupied territories to re-establish displaced higher education institutions; meanwhile, their Russo-centric counterparts continued university activities in the so-called Luhansk and Donetsk People’s Republics and Crimea. Most recently, Russia’s full-scale invasion caused further displacement of students, scholars, and universities, creating an environment of education and research provision across borders and cultures. This paper investigates the effect of decentering in Ukraine's higher education landscape on the institutional capacity to deconstruct the Soviet legacy of rigid institutions.

Author

• Liz Shchepetylnykova, Boston College